Under the Stars
by lostinafictionalworld
Summary: About a year into the Ares III training program, Mark organizes a movie night for the crew.


A/N: Thanks to the wonderful Cis-moll, this work is also available in Russian, Под звездами, over on ficbook: /readfic/4250582

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"Yay, crew movie night!" Mark cheered, his voice slightly muffled by the heap of blankets, sleeping bags, and pillows piled in his arms. He dropped them across a row of chairs with a soft whumph.

"Remind me again why we're doing this," Beck asked as he dropped into a seat a few rows up and propped up his feet on the row in front of him.

"Team bonding," Martinez answered, dropping another armload of bedding onto the pile, halfheartedly trying to catch them as they slithered onto the floor.

"But we've been training together for over a year," Vogel said, carefully balancing a giant bowl of popcorn and a smaller bowl of M&M's on an armrest. "Surely we have bonded."

"Morale boosting, then," Mark replied with a shrug. "Do we really need a reason to hang out and watch a movie?"

"In a planetarium, maybe," Beck pointed out, looking up at the curved dome above them. "This feels like an abuse of NASA technology. I'm surprised you actually got Lewis to agree to this."

"That's because I know how to pick my battles," Lewis said as she joined them. "I figured getting permission to use the room would be easier than trying to explain to NASA why their astronauts were in jail after Watney and Martinez inevitably got arrested for breaking in."

"You got permission?" Martinez pouted. "Breaking in is like half the fun."

"Why did NASA even hire you in the first place?" Lewis sighed. "Anyway, I've been told to warn you that if you leave a mess, you will never be allowed in this building again."

Before Martinez could protest, Johanssen called down to them from the projection booth.

"It's all set up. Stop arguing and sit down so I can start it."

"Yes, ma'am," Mark grinned, mock saluting in her direction.

Vogel climbed up to Beck's row and took the aisle seat on his left. Mark followed him and Beck grumbled in annoyance as Mark dislodged his feet to walk past. Mark responded by dropping a blanket on his head and sitting two seats down so Johanssen could sit between them. Lewis and Martinez had walked around to the other end of the aisle and Martinez plopped down next to Mark, bowl of popcorn in hand, with Lewis taking the seat next to him end of the row.

"Alright," Mark called once they were settled and bundled up in blankets. "Punch it, Bethy Jo!" Mark heard Johanssen's huff of annoyance at the nickname but the lights dimmed and the dome above them lit up with a field of stars.

"Space. The final frontier. These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise…"

"No!" Mark and Martinez protested simultaneously.

"Johanssen, you traitor," Mark accused, "you promised we would watch _Star Wars_."

"No," Johanssen shouted back, "you asked if I could reformat _Star Wars_ to play on the dome, to which I answered that I can reformat anything to play on the dome. I never promised we'd actually watch it. _Star Trek_ is better."

"No, it's not!"

"Star Trek is more realistic," Beck pointed out. "I mean their five-year plan is kinda what we do here at NASA, only we haven't found any alien life yet. Or figured out warp."

"What does realism have to do it?" Martinez argued. "The Millennium Falcon, man. Light sabers. Jedis. The Force. I'll take that over scientific accuracy any day."

"But the originals have all the terrible old 70's effects," Johanssen protested, pausing the movie and stomping down to argue with them face to face.

"And the original _Star Treks_ don't?" Mark exclaimed. "They literally just shook the camera and had people fall all over the place! Lewis, back me up here. Your weird obsession with 70's stuff finally is useful. Tell them that _Star Wars_ is a classic and must be loved."

"Mark's right, it is a classic," Lewis said. Mark and Martinez cheered but were cut off as she added, " _Star Trek_ is still better though."

"I feel so betrayed," Mark said, pressing a hand to his chest in mock distress.

"And _Star Wars_ a ton of hot people in it," Martinez pointed out. "Don't try to tell me you didn't appreciate that."

"Yeah, and _Star Trek_ doesn't? Besides, I was like nine when Episode VII came out so I didn't really care."

"Oh my god, Johanssen, you tiny, tiny infant," Mark groaned. "I was a senior in college when that came out. But whatever. Rey, though! She's like the coolest fictional role model a nine-year-old could ask for!"

"Yeah, I suppose Rey is pretty badass," Johanssen mused. "But _Star Trek_ is still better."

"Fine," Mark huffed, before turning to Vogel. "Vogel, you've been awfully quiet. You get to vote too."

"I enjoy both," Vogel shrugged. "Although my children prefer _Star Wars_ , so I suppose I'm more fond of that one."

"Success!" Martinez shouted.

"No," Beck corrected, "it's a tie, 3-3."

"Oh, right."

"Why don't we just compromise like actual adults and pick something else," Lewis suggested dryly. " _Interstellar_ is good and the science is actually pretty realistic by movie standards."

"You only like that movie because everybody says you look like Murph, which means you get to save all the humans," Mark accused.

"And you only dislike it 'cause everybody says you look like Dr. Mann, which means you try to kill everyone," Martinez smirked. "I guess we shouldn't leave you alone on Mars or you might try to kill us."

"Fuck you," Mark pouted, snatching the bowl of popcorn away from Martinez so he could throw a handful of it him. Martinez grabbed it back to retaliate.

"Boys," Lewis snapped fiercely, "if you get popcorn on this floor, you will be eating every single piece off the ground."

"Well, that's unsanitary," Mark said mildly. Lewis glowered at him.

"Aye, Commander," Martinez answered, trying hard not to laugh. He wondered how long it would take Lewis to notice the stray piece of popcorn that was stuck in her hair.

"Oh my god, just pick something already," Beck groaned.

"Oooh, I have the perfect solution," Johanssen announced suddenly.

"Fine," said Lewis. "Just start it. And no complaints or I'm cancelling movie night."

Johanssen dashed back up to the projection booth. They could hear her tapping away on the keyboard for a few minutes, reformatting the movie, until an image finally appeared on the screen of a dolphin in a swimming pool. Mark and Martinez cheered.

"Is this what I think this is?" Beck asked with a bemused smile as Johanssen plopped into the seat next to him. She merely grinned and waited another fifteen seconds until—

"So long and thanks for all the fish," she, Mark, and Martinez burst out singing. "So sad that it should come to this. We tried to warn you all but, oh dear."

"Yup, it's what I thought it was," Beck grinned. Lewis just had her mouth open and looked half a second from complaining.

"Come on, Lewis," Johanssen said cajolingly, "it's funny. I know you'll like it."

"And you did say no more complaints," Mark pointed out.

"Can you at least tell me what it is?" Lewis sighed.

"It's _the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy_ ," Vogel supplied helpfully.

"And you like it?" Lewis asked, hope in her eyes.

"Ja. The book is better but the movie is decent."

"Well, the book is always better," Johanssen agreed matter-of-factly. "That's like the axiom of adaptations."

"Hang on a second," Mark said defensively. "Yes, the book is amazing, but that doesn't mean all adaptations are never as good. I mean, yes, basically all of them change things or leave things out, and some really suck, but that doesn't mean movies can't be great in a different way."

"Sure, whatever," Martinez said. "Just shut up so we can watch the movie." Mark managed to throw another handful of popcorn at him before Lewis confiscated the bowl.

It was late when the movie finished and they were all half-asleep in their chairs. Johanssen was curled up under a mountain of blankets against the chill of the auditorium and had somehow ended up with her head on Beck's shoulder. Vogel had somehow managed to get the bowl of M&M's away from Mark and Martinez and was eating the last few pieces. Lewis was quietly humming along with "So Long and Thanks for All the Fish" as the credits rolled. Mark and Martinez had tried to prop their feet on the same chair and were now trying to knock each other's feet off.

"Okay," Mark announced, untangling himself from his blankets and jumping to his feet. "Star gazing time."

"You know, most people go outside to go star gazing," Beck commented wryly.

"It's January. And raining. And we're surrounded by light pollution," Mark responded. "Have fun seeing nothing and freezing your ass off in the process." He looked in either direction over the sprawl of legs and blankets, decided he didn't want to climb over everyone to get to the aisle, and instead clambered over the back of his chair, nearly falling in the process.

"Do you need me to show you how to work it?" Johanssen asked as Mark reached the projection booth.

"Nah, I can figure it out," he replied, sitting down at the controls. "I am an engineer after all." He hit a button and the projector shut off, leaving the room pitch black.

"Yeah, man, you totally got this," Martinez called up to him.

"Shut it, Martinez."

After a few minutes of not-quite-random button pressing, the projector finally powered back on. The dome was lit up in faint blue as it warmed up.

"Aha! Success!" Mark tapped his way through the computer display. Finally figuring out the system, he entered the coordinates for their location and the dome was lit up with the sky as seen from Florida. The sun moved slowly across the screen.

"Hey, Mark?" Martinez asked. "It's like one in the morning. Why is the sun up?"

"Not helping." Mark fiddled with the controls and the images on the dome suddenly started to spin faster. The sun had set within seconds and the stars streaked past until it reappeared again, repeatedly rising and setting. He hit another button and everything spun the opposite direction. Finally, after an excessive amount of cursing and button pressing, the projection slowed to a stop on the current date and time.

They all sat quietly for a few minutes, reclined back in their chairs and stared up at the dome. Beck leaned over to whisper something in Johanssen's ear, then pointed to something.

"So where's Orion?" Martinez asked after a few minutes.

"It has already set," Vogel answered.

"Oh," Martinez said disappointedly, "that's like the only one I know." They all stared at him.

"So you're telling me that you, our pilot, only know one constellation?" Mark asked skeptically.

"Oh, yeah. I know the Big Dipper too. See, it's that one there." Martinez pointed.

"Didn't you have to take astronavigation in the Air Force?" Lewis asked, slightly concerned.

"They offer it but it stopped being a requirement ages ago in like the 90's."

"Then didn't NASA make you take it?" Mark asked. "'Cause they definitely made me take it." Martinez just smirked.

"But you do know which direction to fly the _Hermes_ , right?" Johanssen asked.

"Well obviously," Martinez replied haughtily. "Vogel's in charge of telemetry and we have like three different computers for navigation. I just go wherever I'm told." They just stared at him in silence.

"I'm kidding," he finally admitted with a snort. "God, you guys are so easy to mess with. Of course I know the constellations. See: Little Dipper and Polaris, Cassiopeia, Perseus, Andromeda. I got this." They all laughed, although Lewis looked a tad miffed that she'd fallen for it.

"Okay, fine. Enough of this," Mark announced. He went back to fiddling with the controls and the stars disappeared. A moment later a projection of the earth appeared, the moon slowly orbiting past it. He tapped a few more keys and the image zoomed out, then turned and zoomed further into space. A few seconds later, a tiny red dot appeared, then grew until they were staring at Mars.

They took turns pointing out all the landmarks on the surface, everything from natural features like Olympus Mons or Elysium Planitia to the landing sites for Ares I and II and their own at Acidalia Planitia. The planet slowly rotated as they watched and the two moons, Phobos and Deimos occasionally whizzed past.

"You know," Johanssen giggled suddenly, "Phobos and Deimos kinda look like potatoes."

"Oh my god, they actually do," Mark snorted. The others laughed.

They spent a few more minutes looking at the planet, trying to find the various rovers like Curiosity and Pathfinder, before Mark zoomed out again. He took them on a quick tour through the rest of the solar system, stopping briefly at each planet.

Finally Mark brought the images to a halt while he scrolled through the library of videos the system had. He finally found what he was looking for and hit play.

An animation of the moon Titan filled the screen, Saturn visible in the background. The image zoomed in, bringing them within the atmosphere to the surface. They skimmed over a lake and suddenly a huge structure appeared, a roller coaster suspended over the surface of the lake by a cloud of huge silver balloons. The crew cheered, all of them familiar with the animation.

"So this is what those EagleEye probes have been up to on Saturn," Martinez joked.

As they watched, the image settled onto the track and the ride took off, bringing them up to the top of the first drop and down the other side. They followed the track as it twisted up, down, and around, looping and corkscrewing above the surface of the Titan lake. When the roller coaster finally looped back to the beginning, the camera rotated 180˚ and took off around the track again, this time with the riders facing backwards so they could see the landscape and Saturn off in the distance. Finally the ride slowed to a stop and the image zoomed off over the lake before fading to black.

"And that concludes tonight's entertainment," Mark announced, powering off the projector and turning the overhead lights back on. They all blinked in the sudden brightness.

"So, time to head home?" Lewis yawned. She stood and stretched.

"Nope," Mark grinned. "Sleepover. We have sleeping bags and blankets and everything. And tomorrow's Saturday so it's not like we have to get up bright and early for training."

"There's not much floor space," Vogel pointed out.

"Well the chairs recline so they'll be fine to sleep in," Martinez said.

"Yeah, and our backs are gonna regret that in the morning," Beck argued.

"Hey, if we can survive three days squished into the MAV for that damn low orbit scenario training, I think we can survive one night in a comfy chair," Mark said. Beck shook his head in defeat.

The six of them spent a few minutes shuffling around, collecting bedding, and getting comfortable. Johanssen climbed over everybody to get to the light switch, then stumbled back over them in the dark. Finally they were all settled.

"This was a great idea, Mark," Lewis said. "Thanks for organizing it."

"No problem, Commander," Mark replied happily. "It was a lot of fun. And Martinez and Johanssen helped too."

"And Vogel brought the snacks and you made sure we didn't get arrested," Johanssen piped up. "It was a team effort."

"What did Beck do, then?" Martinez snorted. Beck gave a put-upon sigh.

"I will inevitably be giving you all back massages tomorrow when you come to me complaining that you're sore from sleeping in chairs." They all laughed.

"Sounds like a fair contribution," Mark agreed.

"Alright, time to sleep," Lewis ordered with a yawn. "Goodnight, everybody."

"Goodnight, Commander," they chorused, and slowly fell asleep.

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A/N: Hi! Thanks for reading! This was inspired by a planetarium show I just went to for my astronomy class. I tried to keep the constellations mentioned accurate to what they would be able to see from NASA at the time. The roller coaster animation is a real thing called SpacePark 360 by Dome3D and is amazing. Phobos and Deimos really do look like potatoes, as brought to my attention by this tumblr post: post/131437683302/mark-watney-crying-in-the-distance . Thanks for putting up with my gratuitous use of pop culture references. I'm so sorry if I spoiled Interstellar for anyone. As always, these characters are not mine and belong to the brilliant Andy Weir. Hope you enjoyed it!


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